Welcome to Israel, Ambassador Friedman!

Batya Medad , 16/05/17 07:05

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Batya Medad

New York-born Batya Medad made aliyah with her husband just weeks after their 1970 wedding and has been living in Shiloh since 1981. Political pundit, with a unique perspective, Batya has worked in a variety of professions: teaching, fitness, sales, cooking, public relations, photography and more. She has a B.S. in Journalism, is a licensed English Teacher specializing as a remedial teacher and for a number of years has been studying Tanach (Bible) in Matan. Batya blogs on Shiloh Musings and A Jewish Grandmother. ...

Decades ago, I remember an American friend saying he'd only live in Israel if in a position like Ambassador from the USA. Well, David Friedman sure hit the jackpot. After a long business, personal and more recently political relationship with Donald Trump, Friedman is now United States Ambassador to the State of Israel.

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Friedman is an Orthodox Jew who even owns a home in Israel. So it's pretty obvious that he's no stranger to Israel and especially Jerusalem.

As Ambassador Friedman made it very clear during the rather unpleasant confirmation hearings, he will no longer be a private citizen in Israel. As ambassador, he'll follow the rules. And as we must remember it's the perpetually anti-Israel State Department that makes up most of them. Get real. We can't expect US President Trump to have done a clean sweep, firing and replacing all the many, many employees whose antipathy to Israel is horrendously blatant. And Friedman won't be able to replace his staff with those he'd prefer either.

No doubt that we will be in for interesting times, and it won't be easy for Friedman who is a lot more familiar with Israel and Israeli history than most, if not all of the embassy and consulate staffs. And no doubt that this will make it extremely difficult for all of them.

My husband and I have hosted the incoming consular officials for decades, as part of their "getting to know the scene." So I do have a working knowledge of what happens. The staff changes all the time. By the time they become familiar with a place they are posted elsewhere.

Ambassador Friedman will certainly be between a rock and a hard place, especially since the international media and most American governmental bodies, besides all the disappointed Democrats are constantly looking to criticize and find fault with any and everything concerning POTUS Trump. I expect Friedman to be targeted too.